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Netanyahu notified the President of Israel about the formation of the government :: Politics :: RBC

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent President Reuven Rivlin a letter informing him of the formation of a coalition government. It is reported by The Jerusalem Post.

The swearing-in ceremony of the new Israeli government will take place on May 14 at 22:00 (coincides with the Moscow one). The Knesset (Israeli parliament) is expected to vote for the appointment of former tourism minister Yariv Levin as speaker. Then the deputies will vote for confidence in the new government. If supported, most ministers will be sworn in.

According to the publication, representatives from the Likud, Kahol-Lavan, Shas, Yakhadut ha-Tora, Avoda, Derekh-Eretz and Gesher parties will be included in the coalition government.

Israel entered the third round of political crisis

On March 2, Israel held parliamentary elections, which became the third in less than a year.

In April 2019, Likud and Kahol-Lavan received 35 seats each, and not one of the forces was able to form a government. In September of the same year, the center-left gained one more vote, but they could not get the support of 61 deputies, because of which they appointed a new vote.

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Fed will not go into minus – Kommersant newspaper No. 83 (6804) from 05/14/2020

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The head of the Federal Reserve System (FRS), Jerome Powell, warned of the long-term risks of a deep recession and a fall in US employment, urging Congress and the White House to take new steps to support the US economy. At the same time, he said that the Fed does not consider the possibility of removing the key rate from the current near-zero level to the negative zone, on the eve of the desirability of such actions, US President Donald Trump said.

The US economy may face the long-term negative effects of the coronavirus outbreak, as liquidity problems eventually lead to bankruptcies, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell warned Wednesday. He invited the US Congress and the White House to take additional measures to help the economy. According to him, fiscal support, although it will entail an increase in the budget deficit (now it is about 20% of GDP, a level of 10% was considered acceptable in recent years), but it will allow the economy to recover faster.

Mr. Powell described the role of the Fed as “covering temporary liquidity problems,” recalling that the regulator can “lend, but not spend.”

The Fed has already made three decisions on additional measures to support the economy in a pandemic. At first, the discount rate was reduced, then short-term liquidity was announced, and at the end of March the regulator promised for the first time to use the “whole set of measures”, thereby effectively removing the limit on the volume of asset repurchases. In addition, large-scale concessional lending programs for the business were initiated with a total volume of $ 2.3 trillion (this is approximately 10% of the country’s GDP, see Kommersant on April 10). For its part, Congress approved three aid programs worth $ 2.9 trillion, equivalent to 14% of GDP.

In the United States, more than 20 million people have already lost their jobs. Among those who were busy in February and whose income does not exceed $ 40 thousand per year, now 40% do not work. Given such a sharp fall in employment, consumption is likely to wait for a slow recovery, according to ING Bank. This, in turn, will put additional pressure on inflation – in April, prices have already fallen by 0.8% month-on-month (including excluding food and energy – by 0.4%).

Donald trump on the eve again called on the Fed to further reduce rates, bringing them into the negative zone. He noted that other countries are already benefiting from this (the ECB, the central banks of Japan, Sweden and Switzerland used this measure at different times). However, Jerome Powell said Wednesday after the speech that members of the Federal Open Market Committee of the Fed did not, in principle, consider such a measure. In his speech, he also pointed out that low inflation has been accompanied in recent decades by the accumulation of imbalances in asset prices. The experience of countries where negative rates operate is not considered by experts as unambiguously successful, they add to ING, noting that the Fed is unlikely to shift them in the opposite direction in the next year and a half.

One of the problems of the controversy surrounding negative rates is the perceptible gap between the conclusions regarding the effects of the transition to the “economy of negative rates” that politicians make from standard economic models and the more complex constructions that the Fed uses.

The main problem of negative rates is that this step can be discussed along with others only in the concept of “least evil” and in the absence of other alternative monetary policy options. For example, a short-term negative rate, all other things being equal, may be an acceptable solution to problems with a sharp temporary reduction in bank capital. In the general simplified case, the provision of money at a negative percentage with high risks in the economy provokes banks to the only rational behavior: to fix the profit generated by the Fed for free, without essentially getting involved in any substantial projects. In this sense, the program of conditionally addressless distribution of funds by the government, up to “helicopter money”, looks in most cases a more reasonable alternative to a negative rate.

Tatyana Edovina, Dmitry Butrin

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The City of Paris partners with the Ministry of Culture to support the performing arts

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In mid-April, before the Senate culture committee, Minister of Culture Frank Riester announced the creation of an Emergency Performance Fund (FUSV) with 5 million euros. The initiative responded to the call from the National Syndicate of Private Theater (SNDTP) asking for financial assistance so that the fabric of private theaters – mostly Parisians -, entrepreneurs of theater shows and live performance companies (theater, dance, circus, street arts, puppets) that are not subsidized cannot be reduced to a frenzy because of the consequences of the Covid-19 epidemic. Affected, the sector estimated at the end of April its losses at 63 million euros in turnover, for the first two months of confinement alone.

→ LIVE – Coronavirus: the latest information from France and around the world

By announcing the creation of this fund – managed by the Association for the support of private theater (ASTP) which, via an online platform, centralizes requests – the Minister of Culture had also invited the City of Paris and the local authorities to associate with it.

Voted on May 18, aid from the City of Paris will be capped at 15 million euros

Alongside Adami (Society of services to performers) which provides financial support of € 200,000 to this fund, the City of Paris confirmed its aid in a press release published on Tuesday, May 12. The municipality specifies that this fund “ intended to cover part of the fixed costs excluding payroll (Editor’s note: rents, electricity costs), which persist despite the lack of activity “, And this, in addition “ compensation for partial unemployment or the solidarity fund for companies “

The exact amount of the participation of the City of Paris will be voted and announced on May 18, after the Paris Council. In an interview granted to the Parisian on May 4, the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, has already mentioned the creation of ” a exceptional aid fund of 15 million euros For all the cultural players affected by the consequences of the epidemic. The FUSV will benefit from part of this 15 million euros, we explain to the cabinet of Christophe Girard, deputy mayor of Paris for culture.

Aid therefore different from the 100 million euros in annual subsidies normally allocated to different Parisian cultural institutions. Payment which, it is specified by this same firm, was anticipated by a few weeks taking into account the exceptional circumstances.

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Tesla resumes operation of a factory for the production of batteries for electric vehicles :: Business :: RBC

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The management of the company took advantage of the partial lifting of quarantine and decided to return all workers to the workshops in Nevada

Photo: Ben Margot / AP

Tesla management has decided to fully restore the work of the plant in Nevada, which produces batteries for electric vehicles, reports The Verge, citing an internal letter to the company.

The publication indicates that the leadership of Tesla initially announced a partial resumption of production in Nevada, where the authorities went on to soften quarantine measures, but then changed its position.

Valeria Workman, head of the human resources department at Tesla North America, promised that for the safety of workers, the company will launch additional transport to the plant so that people can maintain a social distance. She said that those employees who fear for their health can stay at home, however, in connection with the removal of restrictive measures, in this case they will no longer be able to rely on benefits.

Tesla previously went to the opening of a plant in California, although local authorities in the person of the Alameda County government opposed such a move. Ilon Musk, who called the actions of California leaders to extend quarantine unconstitutional and threatened to transfer the main production of Tesla Model 3 cars to another state, received support from Donald Trump on the eve of this issue. “California should allow Mask to reopen its factory now. And you need to do this quickly, ”wrote the President of the United States on his Twitter.

Musk threatens to relocate Tesla headquarters from California

Elon Musk

At the same time, Musk promised that he would personally be at the California plant, and asked the authorities not to detain anyone other than him for violating anti-quarantine restrictions.

Musk in Russian called the former US Secretary of Labor an idiot

Earlier, the businessman said that he knew how to protect workers in a pandemic. According to him, in this regard, the experience of resuming activities at an enterprise in China was useful to him. However, Tesla employees in various anonymous interviews pointed out that in reality the management could not guarantee their safety. So, the masks offered to the workers turned out to be too small to cover their mouth and nose, and, according to them, no one took care of maintaining social distance in the shops.

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Oil backed by dividends – Kommersant newspaper No. 81 (6802) dated 05/12/2020

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Over the past week, funds from developed countries lost about $ 12 billion of investments, emerging markets funds lost almost $ 4.5 billion. International investors are withdrawing from their restored value in anticipation of a global economic downturn. Enviable stability is demonstrated by Russian funds, interest in which is supported by positive dynamics in oil prices and upcoming dividend payments.

International investors have stepped out of stocks, according to Emerging Portfolio Fund Research (EPFR). According to Kommersant’s estimates, based on Bank of America data (taking into account EPFR data), for the week ending May 6, customers of all equity funds took away $ 16.3 billion. This result is 2.5 times more than the week-ago indicator and the maximum since the end Martha. At the same time, the main outflow of funds fell on the funds of developed countries. According to EPFR, it exceeded $ 11.7 billion, which is 3.5 times more than a week ago. Most actively, investors withdrew money from US funds – according to EPFR, about $ 9.3 billion was taken from US funds, almost six times more than a week earlier. The outflow from European funds slowed from $ 2.7 billion to $ 1.8 billion.

In less than two months, thanks to massive financial support from the central banks of leading countries, stock indices have recovered a significant part of their losses. So, the S&P 500 index won back 60% of the March fall, and the MSCI EM index – over 40%. According to Valery Vaysberg, Director of the Analytical Department of the Region Group of Companies, global stock markets have achieved the goals of corrective movement and now investors are taking profit.

At the same time, concern about weak macroeconomic data published in various countries is only growing.

In particular, unemployment in the US in April rose to a record 14.7%, that is, 20.5 million people lost their jobs in a month. According to Ravil Yusipov, Deputy General Director of the TFG Management Company, after a quick rebound, many investment houses made statements that the stock market is in the largest discrepancy with the forecasted profit levels and its multiples look unreasonably high. “There is growth in quantitative terms, but the quality of growth is low,” notes Mr. Yusipov.

Prospects for reducing demand from developed economies lead to the withdrawal of investors from the markets of developing countries. According to EPFR, in the reporting week, funds whose investment policy is focused on emerging markets lost almost $ 4.5 billion against $ 3.4 billion a week earlier. The largest outflow of funds in the BRIC countries came from the funds of China ($ 1.5 billion) and Brazil ($ 328 million).

Russian funds stood out from the overall picture, the net inflow of which amounted to $ 16 million per week (a week earlier, $ 5 million was withdrawn from them).

Analysts attribute the interest shown to the recovery in oil prices. According to Reuters, quotes for the nearest Brent oil futures have been holding at $ 30 per barrel for a week already. The cost of Russian Urals oil is around $ 25 per barrel. In addition, investors expect dividend payments for the year for Russian issuers. “The Russian market pretty well experienced the April fall in oil prices, not least due to the expected payment of high dividends for 2019 and the activity of local investors. Forecasts on the profits of the largest issuers, although they suggest a significant decrease, remain positive, which allows counting on dividends for 2020, unlike many foreign companies, ”says Valery Vaysberg.

Further development of the market situation will be determined by the generosity of leading financial regulators. In particular, market participants do not exclude that the US Federal Reserve, following the example of the ECB, may for the first time in history lower its key rate below zero by December this year. This is evidenced by futures on the federal funds rate. “The money wall from global regulators is able to give confidence to investors. Russian stocks remain attractive – oil prices have moved away from the lows, and the securities themselves look cheap as a result of the weakening ruble, ”said Ravil Yusipov. However, according to him, so far “the current inflow into Russian funds looks more like a niche than a long-term trend.”

Vitaliy Gaidaev

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Between twin sisters, unconditional support

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“We are one person divided in two”

Olivia, 22

“With Julie, my twin sister, we were raised alone by my mother and separated from kindergarten, at the age of 3. Physically. The only thing that sets us apart is its dimples. In the extended family, we are often confused at first. However, we are of different characters, we do not have the same musical, artistic or food tastes.

My sister has a more sociable temper than me. She is cheerful, easy going. I admire her because she says what she thinks. Above all, she says what I think. But since she is also a bit shy, I speak for her or tell her what to do. I protected her a lot while sometimes being demanding. She is not very organized, I am calm and pragmatic. There was never any jealousy between us. I stood up for him, I helped him to assert himself. Julie is grateful to me for playing this big sister role. Even today, as she doesn’t like to make appointments, I pretend to be her, on the phone, changing my first name. Or else I make her a list of what she should put in her suitcase. She brings me her zest for life, her good humor that rubs off on me. We are like one person divided in two.

However, I would not want to have twin children, because of the eyes of others. We are considered twin, not as a whole person. At school, some classmates even asked us: “If I pinch you, does your sister feel it?” “ Prejudices persist. The twins are neither superheroes nor magicians. This strong bond between them comes from the fact that they developed at the same time, receiving the same education. “

“When one has a problem, the other will support it”

Lucie, 19

“After almost six months in Australia, in a family where I took care of the children, I returned to France, just before confinement. I found my parents and my twin sister, Marie, who is preparing for the medical entrance exam. It was the first time that we had been separated for so long. We were in contact, two or three times a week. Already, before, each had their own life. We are not alike, but we will think the same thing at the same time.

As a child, I often relied on my sister. She was much more serious, more committed than I was. For example, in my calendar, in elementary school, I didn’t write anything down, because I knew she was going to do it. In college, we gained autonomy. We were left to decide to be in separate classes. Grandparents, more distant family, parents of friends tended to put us in the same box, saying “you”, and that annoyed us. As if we had a character for two. We rebelled a little against that. We wanted to be differentiated. Going abroad was a way of asserting myself.

I can tell everything to my twin. She doesn’t judge me. We live the same things, at the same age, on an equal footing. When one has a concern, the other will support it. If my sister is wrong, in front of the others I support her and we explain ourselves afterwards. Between us, the arguments do not last. It’s fortunate to have a twin sister. “

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Lukashenko advised Belarusians to survive the epidemic at their unloved job :: Politics :: RBC

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A person can survive the time of the epidemic by getting a job, albeit not very popular, said Alexander Lukashenko. According to him, there are enough vacancies in the republic for this.

Alexander Lukashenko

(Photo: Nikolai Petrov / BelTA / AP)

There are enough vacancies in Belarus to find work and survive the epidemic of coronavirus. This was announced at a meeting on measures of social support for citizens by the President of the Republic, Alexander Lukashenko. The meeting report is published on the website of the President of Belarus.

“We will support those citizens who need support today,” Lukashenko said and noted that if a person has lost his job, then there are enough vacancies. “And this is a difficult time, a person should live peacefully, getting a job. Maybe not quite acceptable and loved by him, ”the president believes.

Lukashenko said that all issues of support for citizens will be decided by local authorities: “All the money that we can send today to support specific enterprises and citizens should be directed to places. First of all, to the governors, ”the president explained. “They’ll figure out who to support.” He expressed the opinion that “those who need support and who move themselves should be supported.” “We need to look for work ourselves,” he stressed.

Coronavirus spread rate in the world

Cases per day

Source: JHU

World Data i

But there are industries that in the current conditions objectively do not have the opportunity to work, for example, Belavia Airlines. In such a situation, the state should provide support, the president said.

At the same meeting, the Belarusian leader said that Western countries and Russia used the same method that Belarus has been using for three months now in the fight against coronavirus infection. They begin to open economies after strict quarantine measures and allow people to work. “Look to the east: our native Russia, friendly to us, has opened a construction complex, industrial enterprises, and other main sectors of the economy. This is more than 90 percent of the population who will go to work. Rich Russia, which has accumulated a huge gold and foreign exchange reserve and the National Welfare Fund. She understood that there could be bad consequences, ”said the speaker.

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Sales of new cars in Russia in April fell by 70% :: Business :: RBC

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The Association of European Businesses reported on the largest drop in the Russian automotive market in the history of statistics collection. Sales of new cars decreased by 102 thousand per month

Photo: Sergey Bobylev / TASS

In April 2020, when the most stringent self-isolation measures were taken in Russia in connection with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, 102,089 new cars were sold in the country less than in the same period in 2019. The drop in sales was 72.4%. This was reported by the Association of European Businesses (AEB).

“After an exceptionally high level of sales in March 2020, in April, in connection with the situation around COVID-19, dealerships were forced to suspend or significantly limit their activities. Compared to the same month last year, sales fell by 72.4%, ”said Thomas Stärzel, Chairman of the AEB Automobile Manufacturers Committee.

According to him, Russia recorded the largest monthly decline in car sales in the entire history of AEB surveillance.

AvtoVAZ sales in April fell three times

Photo: Yakov Knyazev / TASS

Black April 2020 dealt a severe blow to the liquidity of dealers, and in the medium term, even to their stability. In order to stay close to customers in the new reality, we all need to try new creative formats for communication and sales, ”explained Shtertzel.

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Trump explained the refusal to wear a medical mask because of the coronavirus :: Society :: RBC

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US President Donald Tram explained that he does not wear a mask during the coronavirus pandemic due to the fact that he does not approach anyone at close range. He announced this at a briefing broadcast by C-SPAN.

According to him, White House employees maintain a distance from him. “I’m not close to anyone,” Trump said.

The President noted that everyone in the White House wears masks. “Everyone I met today was masked,” he said.

Three directors in the US Department of Health went into isolation on the background of the virus in the White House

White House employees were required to wear medical masks inside the building, The Wall Street Journal wrote. An exception was made for those cases when they are sitting at their tables.

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Senators appreciated Klimkin’s words about Russia’s right to celebrate Victory Day :: Politics :: RBC

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Pavel Klimkin

(Photo: Emmanuele Contini / Zuma / Global Look Press)

Members of the Federation Council responded to the words of the former Foreign Minister of Ukraine Pavel Klimkin about the lack of the right for Russia to celebrate Victory Day over Nazism. This Ukrainian politician said earlier in an interview with Espresso-TV.

“Klimkin’s parents live in Russia in the Penza region, I don’t know if they read what he says. In the Great Patriotic War, the multinational Soviet people won – Russians, Belarusians, Georgians, Ukrainians, Moldavians, Kazakhs, Uzbeks and even the Baltic peoples, where there are national heroes who defended general freedom and independence. In conditions when the war and reconstruction events took place, the national republics received a lot at the expense of Russia. Ukraine had enormous preferences due to territories and support. We considered this victory to be common, ”said Franz Klintsevich, a member of the Federation Council in an interview with RBC.

According to him, such figures as Klimkin, “not remembering their kinship and history”, unleashed a war in Ukraine. “When citizens who disagreed with fascism and nationalism began to protect their families, Russia began to morally, politically, financially help people living in southeastern Ukraine. They believe that we are participating in this war because we are not giving the opportunity, by supporting the Russian people, to commit genocide over our own people, ”the senator said. Klintsevich added that it is necessary to institute criminal proceedings against Klimkin in connection with many statements “that speak of inciting national hatred and encouraging terrorists.”

Klimkin said Russia has no right to celebrate Victory Day

As stated in a conversation with RBC, a senator from the Republic of Crimea, a member of the Federation Council committee on international affairs, Sergei Tsekov, Russia, above all others, has the right to be the heir to the Victory.

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